Pocono Ski Resorts on Alert after Ski Lift Accident in Maine
Tuesday's chair lift accident at Maine's popular Sugarloaf ski resort injured a number of people, including several children. Eight people -- 5 adults and 3 children -- were injured seriously enough to be transported to a local hospital when the chair lift derailed. One of the injured was air-lifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland. Philadelphia personal injury attorneys noted that accidents involving severe jolts and falls can result in serious back and neck injuries.
When the derailment occurred, ranks of lift chairs plunged 30 feet, tumbling several skiers out of their chairs and into the snow below. Scores of the 220 skiers on board the lift at the time of the accident were stranded in their chairs in the bitter cold for nearly two hours before rescue crews were able to lower them safely to the ground.
Although the 35-year-old ski lift had recently passed a required safety inspection, resort personnel said it was scheduled for replacement this coming summer, in part because of stability issues in high winds. Winds on the mountain were gusting to 40 mph on the morning of the accident which had caused the resort to close all ski lifts earlier that morning. The accident occurred about 10:30 a.m., not long after ski lifts were reopened. One eyewitness told Fox News that he had seen an employee working on the lift prior to the accident.
Authorities are investigating to determine whether a mechanical problem or strong winds or a combination of the two might have caused the accident.
The Maine accident put Pocono ski resort operators and safety authorities on alert. In an effort to prevent ski accidents at Pennsylvania's popular winter playground, this year the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry added a load test to the regular inspection procedures mandated for ski lifts. In addition to an annual state inspection, the 180 ski lifts operating in Pennsylvania's 23 ski areas undergo daily inspects by resort personnel.
